500,000 mail-in ballots were tossed during the 2024 elections. Make sure yours is counted.
Election Day is November 3, 2026.
Read the F*ing directions
for
Easy Peasy
you can vote by mail if you
Are registered to vote by October 19th. Iowa offers same-day registration if you miss this deadline, but you'll need to vote in person.
Have submitted an application for an absentee ballot and it is RECEIVED by 5pm on October 19th.
Click here for information about accessible voting for folks with disabilities.
Click here for information on your eligibility if you have a criminal conviction.
Military and Overseas Voters
Active duty military, military family member, or living overseas? You have additional voting options! Visit FVAP.GOV for details specific to your situation.
Deadlines
Register to vote by October 19th.
Your request for an absentee ballot must be RECEIVED by midnight on October 19th.
Exceptions for medical emergencies: if you’re hospitalized or admitted to a nursing home/rehab center within 15 days of the election, you can request a ballot up until the day before Election Day, and a team of election officials will deliver your ballot to you.
Ballots must be received by 8pm on Election Day. You can mail it or you can take it directly to your County Auditor's Office. But don’t push it, get it in early!
FYI: Changes at the Post Office
This is important: USPS recently changed its policies and won’t always postmark mail the same day it’s picked up from a mailbox — or even the day after. To guarantee a same-day postmark, you’ll need to go to a post office and ask for a manual postmark. All the more reason to mail things early!
Instructions
Include your driver’s license number or the voter PIN from your state voter ID card.
Place your ballot in the return envelope provided and seal it up.
Sign the envelope where indicated.
No need to put a stamp on it — Iowa pays your postage for you!
You can have someone drop it off for you if you need to. If you have a disability, you can designate anyone to return your ballot. For all other voters, your designee needs to be an immediate family member or a member of your household (someone who lives with you).
DO NOT take your ballot to your polling place on Election Day unless you want to surrender it and vote normally in-person instead.
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Trust, but verify
Click here to see if your ballot has been counted.